Transmigration Into The Beginning After The End

Chapter 28 - WHAT IS TO COME

VIRION ERALITH

Tomorrow is the day, huh? Well if I am being honest, it is today since it's past midnight.

Simply enjoying my time looking through the window, giant trees where we elves have our home. The only place we can actually call home. If the Elenoir were to ever be wiped out of Dicathen, I don't know what I would do…

I don't think there will be a place I can call home after that…

My eyes strayed from the night view in front of me and instead they were fixated on a cup of tea that one of the maids had poured me earlier before she went to sleep. It was cold. I had forgotten about the tea since the view was nice to at least take in after training Arthur and Tessia. Both of them were getting strong, especially Arthur. That brat is indeed someone who might become a lance in the future, hopefully one of elves or maybe it would be better for him to be placed as a lance for all three kingdoms… 

Matter of fact, it is too early for me to say. Arthur's progress to ensure his beasts will stay stable is actually something tricky. He already is on the path of unlocking his second awakening, moments after just unlocking his first awakening…

I moved my cup in a circle, watching the tea swirl in a rich flavor. I was about to take a sip when I heard a commotion outside my office door. 

Initially I was going to leave this unbothered but there was knocking in my door. Aggressive knocking, with words of a desperate person. "Father! Father!I must inform you of something the Lances have just discovered!" 

Alduin, my son, opened it without waiting for my permission. My eyes were still glued to the cup. I only listened to his words without much care. "During their final training, the lances went to a dungeon nearby in hopes of teaching Luke something, until they ran into some people that are not from Dicathen!" 

Getting my interest, I peeled my view from the cup and pushed it to my son, only to see his facial expression filled with despair. I had only seen him like this once and so I have been before, it was when Tessia was kidnapped from Elenoir. 

"What is going on Alduin? Why the hesitation?" 

"The human boy, Luke Hodges, is in critical condition…"

***

"Open up you old bat!" I yelled out, banging on the door as hard as I could. 

It only took moments, before Rinia opened up the door. Her expression was calm and honest but she probably knew that there was something wrong as her expression darkened. "I need your help, Rinia. Luke. Luke is in critical condition. He might die." 

Without any answer she closed the door behind her and walked towards the carriage that had brought me here. 

I was relieved, so much that I urged the elven coachman to speed up…

***

"Where is Luke?"

Rinia asked, her multi-colored eyes scanning the medical ward, seeing multiple healers and nurses walking and some running around. 

A nurse caught my attention, she was signaling towards her that she was taking care of Luke. We hurried, ignoring anything or anyone that was in our path. 

When we got to Luke's nursing room, it took the breath out of me. The two elven Lances, Aya and Alea had been with him since they got here. When they saw me approach them, both bowed down and started to explain what had happened. 

"What happened to Luke?" The grey haired elf recited a spell incantation after she asked the question to the Lances. "Pass me a towel or something to wipe the blood off of him." 

Aya looked more guilty and so did Alea. Both of them looked at Luke with concern. "Elder Virion, idk how Luke got into this condition but when we were at the dungeon, facing this entity and then… then we were next to the Elishare forest…"

Before I could even say something, Rinia continued to ask questions. "What did this 'entity' look like?"

Alea was next to answer, saying, "He was a tall, pale figure, clad in black armor and a red cape that was similar to the color of his eyes. Horns that curled on the sides of his head." 

Not asking for more, the deviant elven woman concentrated in curing the human boy. 

However, whatever questioning we did to the Lances, it would only solidify the statement that Luke must have the answer to these things. 

I walked outside the room–more like we were kicked out by the seer elf after saying she needed to concentrate and having too many people in one room was bad–trying to think of a way to tell Arthur about this. Of course I considered a possible way of not telling him, but Arthur was my disciple, Luke's friend. I bet that he wouldn't forgive me if I didn't tell him now. 

I wondered continuously whether I should tell Arthur about this or not. 

Yet, before I came to a decision, the two lances walked up to me. 

"Elder Virion, we have something to show you." 

LUKE HODGES

Darkness…

That is all to it…

Nothing…

No feeling…

No emotions…

No direction…

I couldn't tell whether or not I had my eyes opened or closed. After some time, I gave up the idea of caring, after all, I had died… or at least I had thought. 

This is what Arthur went through, when he was transported into the RelicTombs if I am correct. However, I doubt I am still alive. Using that power, I knew I would get some serious consequences but death was always something I saw at the door when I would use it against the lances for training. 

Against the lances…huh? 

I wonder if Aya and Alea are okay. Taking them to the edge of the forest, maybe many miles away from the dungeon where Cadell resided was the safer option. But I can't and feel, or perhaps wonder, did Cadell follow me? Or at least sense my mana signature and maybe killed us all? 

Hmmm. If so, I think they would resent me for it. 

I tried to smile, but I don't know if I did or not. 

This was a confusing feeling and situation at the same time. 

My feet couldn't be felt, neither could my arms, much less my blinking. 

I got annoyed…

Annoyed? 

How could I feel that? 

I was dead, wasn't I? 

Or am I in a sequence of life and death? In between the realms as other people put it? Just crossing the river to the other side? 

If it was about crossing the river… there would be a river in this void of darkness. Yet there isn't a single thing…

Quite the party pooper, huh?

More than that theory. How long has it been? 

Maybe outside of this place a week or two have passed… I don't know. 

But here it feels like I've been here for a decade or two…confusing…

Should I just stay here? 

It was more relaxing and less taxing on my body and mind… Just before, I had to worry about the world, the continent of Dicathen, now I have no worries at all… I wonder why?

This was something that was comfortable to be in…floating around in the darkness…hoping to find a…

A right place to be.

I continued to stream through the void. No motive to move or desire to understand… that was until voices were being echoed through the darkness. At first, I didn't have the means to care about it until it got annoying. 

"Lu…"

"...Ke"

My eyelids felt heavy, this time I knew that my eyes were closed, and when I opened them I was blinded by the white light.

I let out a groan, my hands unable to be lifted by my sheer strength, not unless I exercised that power but it was unneeded…

Cadell…

"W-where is…he?" 

I hear footsteps all around me and maybe outside the place I was. But that was the leasts of my worries. I felt a need to know where I was. My chest inside was hollow, I was feeling something, a different emotion than what I was used to. There was a need for me to know where I was…were the lances where.

"Aya. Alea. Answer me… Dammit." 

The mana around me walked, no, floated away from me like it was scared. That is the conclusion I came to at the moment because my mana core didn't achieve any remaining mana in it.

That was enough! 

To hell, I cared less if I had something to deal with.

"Sta–"

"Enough Luke!" 

The familiar voice settled me down without question. 

It was Elder Rinia. She had… aged. It was like thirty more years had passed and it was my first time seeing her. 

I wanted to say something to her, to tell her that I was sorry about earlier. But something deep down told me that Cadell might be near, that he was in a ten mile radius. With every inch of will power I had left in the tank, multiple elemental affinities sparked and rolled around the room, more specifically me. I was wasting mana like a child but that wasn't what mattered to me, what mattered was staying away from Cadell now that we know he is here. 

"Luke. Luke! You are safe, in the castle." The old elf said, her hands wrapped around me while I struggled to get off her grasp. 

"He… is near… we have…" I didn't have much more strength to say another word. The semi-activation of the spell had taken a toll on me even though it wasn't fully fledged. None of the lances were strong enough to fight him much less give us time, and our strongest warrior is still a child who barely managed to understand the beasts will given to him. 

'Don't be panicked Luke. I am using magic to speak directly into your mind, only I and I alone can hear whatever you say in your mind.' 

This is…

Loud and long breathing sounds gave me a settle sensation of being inadequate. 

I will explain what is to come…